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First Battle of Harkington
The First Battle of Harkington was a battle that took place between the Trident Empire and the Sulycan Republic during the Territorial Wars in the Abramsian capital of Harkington, that lasted from 2677 to 2699. The Battle Prelude On September 24, 2677, relations between the Trident Empire and the Sulycan Republic dissolved entirely, and on October 27, 2677, the Sulycan Republic declared war on the Trident Empire. It began its war by mobilizing an invasion force towards Abramsia, in an intent for it to be a show of force. The Trident Empire responded immediately with a full counter-attack, made up mostly of the Valkyrie Legion as well as a few divisions of Marines. One of the first cities the Sulycans attacked was the planet's capital, Harkington, and quickly overpowered the surprised garrison of Trident Army troopers and local militia. However, not long after the Sulycans took the city, two battalions of the Valkyrie Legion launched their counter-attack on the city, and a massive battle began. The Counter-Attack On November 9, the Valkyrie battalions attacked the city, managing to gain a lot of ground in the first couple days, but were halted near the bridge leading to the downtown section of the city. From there, things began going downhill for the Tridents. The Valkyries attempted to take the bridge by force, but were beaten back by the sheer numbers of the Sulycans. Not long after, the Sulycans were reinforced with another division. Realizing it would be pointless to try and attack the bridge again, the Valkyries settled down and called for reinforcements. But the Trident Navy was busy dealing with the Sulycan fleet, and were only able to send down a Marine Armored division led by Major General Henry MacFlander. Even then, it took two weeks for the Marines to arrive, as due to the heavy fighting in the atmosphere, the division could only be sent down in small chunks at a time. But once they did finally make it down, the combined force of the Valkyries and Marines assaulted the bridge again, but to no avail. The Sulycans were dug in too well. MacFlander and the leader of the Valkyrie forces, Lieutenant Commander Robert Belousov, met to discuss what their next action would be. Belousov suggested that some of his men use rafts to cross the river at night and then try and take the Sulycans by surprise, which could possibly allow the main force to be able to cross the bridge. The General agreed, and the plan was due to be executed to nights later. Belousov personally led the operation, and was the first to head out. The rafts floated to the other side of the river, but a mere few meters from the shore, they were spotted and fired upon. The Valkyrie managed to make it up, however, and caused mayhem among the Sulycans. Belousov, was unfortunately killed in the attack when his raft was hit by a large burst of machine gun fire, and was hit in the head multiple times.